Allies are folks who will stick their neck out for you, take a stand for you, and align with you, even if there is no perceived personal benefit. My name is Lucinda Koza, and I'm on a mission to be an ally, to discover how I can ally, discover how others ally and perhaps most importantly, be an ally to myself. What happens to your brain when you become a mother? Does society respect you more, or less? Is this the most important job in the world, or is it not a job at all (unpaid labor, anyone)? Could birthing, mothering and caregiving actually be the most essential labor toward building a better future? If so, why doesn't society seem to care about our wellbeing? I am a columnist at Authority Magazine, where I interview highly impactful and functioning people about their common relevant experiences and how they survived. Only by sharing our painfully personal stories can we alleviate the shame of others, and begin to understand the story of ourselves.